Shattered
by xXBladeWolfxX
Summary: Demyx has come back from a mission wounded more deeply than anyone but Axel seems to truly understand. Will he weather the storm with Demyx, or will the breaking tide drown them both? M for language, references to rape, and explicitness in second chapter.
1. Weathering the Storm

Demyx was known throughout the Castle as the slightly goofy guy who always had a smile for someone. Even though he liked to deny it, Axel had always thought that out of all of them, Demyx deserved his heart the most. Even Roxas wasn't as kind, and just…innocent.

So everyone knew of Demyx, knew him by sight and the characteristic smile that almost always adorned his face. Even so, only a few people noticed the day Demyx died.

Axel looked around, having heard a portal open in his room. He turned to chew someone out, but stopped when he saw Demyx. His sea-blue eyes were dull, devoid of their usual sparkle and were red-rimmed. Dark shadows haunted his face, and his smile was nowhere to be found.

"Whoa, tough mission, Dem?" Axel asked, letting out a soft whistle at the state of his friend. His robe was slightly tattered, and the zipper had been ripped free. Demyx nodded and limped towards Axel's door.

"Sorry," he rasped, his voice hoarse and no louder than a whisper. "I didn't mean to bother you." He opened the door and limped out, shutting the door quietly behind him. Axel frowned. Something wasn't quite right with his water friend. There had been something lurking in those dull eyes…fear. Fear and sorrow. He walked out in the hall, not caring that he only had a pair of loose pajama pants on.

Knocking on Demyx's door, he said just loud enough for Demyx to hear him, "Hey, Dem! Let me in, please." He paused. No answer. His concern deepened. Demyx always answered his door, even with a yell to go away. "Dem," he called once more to be sure that the blonde sitarist simply hadn't fallen asleep.

When he still got no answer, he portaled directly into Demyx room. What he saw about made him choke. Demyx was curled up in a tight little ball on his floor, his face clenched in pain. His ribs barely moved with breath, and Axel immediately knelt to the ground, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder.

Demyx's eyes snapped open and he screamed silently, terror in every line of his body. He tried to scramble away, chest heaving in panic. Axel felt his heart-no, he didn't _have _a heart-he felt his gut twist in pity and a slow, burning anger. He would find out what happened, no matter what. It pained him to see his formerly cheerful companion reduced to a mindless heap of fear and pain. He saw tears starting to track their way down his friend's cheeks and hesitantly stretched out a hand to console him.

With a cry of sheer anguish, Demyx clawed his way backwards, the sleeves of his robe raising enough for Axel to see the fierce red rope burn on his wrists. There were also finger-sized bruises on his arm, and more than one set of bite marks.

Axel's jaw clenched, and he could feel his anger burning hotter, stronger, fueled by Demyx's pain and suffering. He was about to portal out and demand that the Superior start a manhunt, or something when he saw Demyx flinching and trying to move even farther away, his face becoming pink. Axel smelled heat and glanced down. He was blanketed in living flame, the tongues of fire licking across his body with a will of their own.

He instantly smothered the flames, realizing how hot he must have felt to Demyx, whose eyes were wide and whose face was pale with shock, the trembling in his body showing the fire-wielder just how badly Demyx was terrified. He saw a bead of blood slip down Demyx's neck to spatter on the floor, the scarlet drop marring the surface.

Axel started crooning soft consolations and gently took Demyx in his arms. Instead of fighting to free himself, Demyx merely seized up and trembled, pupils dilated in fear. Axel hesitantly tucked a stray lock of hair behind Demyx's ear, feeling him relax only slightly. He started running his fingers gently through the younger man's hair, soothing him softly and rocking slightly.

Demyx finally relaxed and buried his face on Axel's shoulder, tears slipping from behind closed eyelids. Axel just held him close, feeling the tremors of Demyx's silent sobs. When Demyx fell asleep, still clinging to Axel like he was his only link to life, Axel gently stood up from the floor, wincing as his legs started to tingle as the blood flowed back into them. He sat down on Demyx's bed, reluctant to release his friend. Glancing at the clock, he saw it was only midnight, and neither of them had a mission the next day…or that day, technically.

Lying down carefully, he arranged the blonde sitarist in his arms, so that their faces were almost touching. He kept a comforting hand on Demyx's ribs, rubbing gentle circles and relaxing tension.

Despite his best intentions, he leaned forward and placed a chaste kiss on Demyx's lips, unable to pass up the opportunity. Thankfully, Demyx didn't wake up, just snuggled closer to Axel, his face seeming slightly troubled as he slept.

Axel woke up to Demyx's thrashing and whimpers. He groggily looked at his friend and saw his eyes were closed. Shaking the blonde's shoulder urgently, Axel tried to wake him up from his nightmare. When Demyx's eyes finally opened, they locked with Axel's as they filled with tears.

"Save me," he whispered, a sob slipping from between his lips. Axel placed his forehead on Demyx's, his hands cupping Demyx's face and his thumbs gently smoothing away the tears.

"I'll do whatever it takes," he murmured quietly, trying to send his sheer reassurance and warmth to Demyx, who was almost cold to Axel's fingers, instead of his usual slightly cooler. He opened his arms as much as he could while lying down, inviting Demyx closer and offering him comfort.

Demyx hesitated, looked deeply into Axel's eyes and let his back rest on Axel's chest, the taller redhead gently curling his body around Demyx, warming him and letting him have the option of retreating if he needed to.

Demyx stayed, though, his arms hugging himself and his spine tense, but he stayed. Axel cautiously wrapped his arms around Demyx's waist, feeling him tense slightly before relaxing. Murmuring in his ear, Axel hugged Demyx close. "The bastard that did this is going to _pay._"

The musician took a shuddering breath and gasped out, "Marluxia. It…he…"

"Shhh…"soothed Axel calmingly, even though in his mind, he was plotting several painful deaths for the pink-haired flower man.

The next morning, Axel left Demyx sleeping and left him a short note before portaling directly to the Superior's office, where he explained what had happened quickly and as emotionlessly as he could. Despite his struggles, flames still flickered over his body, leaping between his fingertips and crackling in his hair, but not burning anything.

Xemnas had broken out in a sheen of sweat before Axel was finished, the redhead's anger increasing the room's temperature until it was almost unbearable for anyone but himself. He knew he was making an impression, and fought down a smirk. His bright green eyes were bright, sparks of light winking in them for fractions of seconds. He concluded and crossed his arms.

"So do I get to kill him now or what?" he growled, a particularly long tongue of flame whipping out and snapping inches from Xemnas's face. The man's orange eyes flashed in anger and he ordered Axel back to Demyx.

"If he is as scarred as you say he is, then he should always be in the presence of someone he trusted. As of now, that person is you. I will let you know of my decision. Understood?"

Axel nodded bitterly, not wanting to have to wait for vengeance, but portaled back to Demyx's room. He frowned when he didn't see the blonde. Suddenly, the sharp taste of fear rose in his throat. There were large spatters of blood on the floor, leading to Demyx's bathroom.

He ran to the door and shook the knob, finding it locked, as he had desperately hoped it wouldn't be. He frantically melted the lock off and threw the door open, seeing Demyx sprawled on the white tiled floor, surrounded by a vivid crimson stain. Axel seemed to be running in slow motion as he raced for the blonde.

Clamping his hands over the deep gashes on Demyx's wrists, Axel felt despair rising in his throat. "Fuck," he whispered, the blonde's wrists as cold as ice to his fingers. He released the wounds just long enough to grab two towels and tie them around his friend's wrists, keeping pressure firm, feeling the rush of blood slowing as it clotted to the towel.

He put his ear close to Demyx's chest, barely able to find the faint whisper of breath in his lungs. Hot tears welled in his eyes and splashed onto Demyx's face, which was as pale as Death itself. He consoled himself with the fact that Demyx hadn't started fading yet. He growled under his breath; of course this was the week Vexen had to be gone many worlds away. Damn!

Axel scooped Demyx up in his arms, somewhat awkwardly due to his need to keep pressure on the still-bleeding wounds. He portaled to Zexion's room, surprising the short Nobody, who had his shirt off and was toweling his hair. He looked up with a scowl, mouth open to berate Axel, but abruptly closed it when he saw Demyx.

"What the fuck-" he began, but Axel cut him off rudely.

"I just need bandaging. I can do it myself. Come _on, _we don't have all day, damn it!"

Zexion bristled and argued, "I have worked with a trained medical professional-"

Axel snorted, plucking the bandages from Zexion's surprised hands. "Yeah, you've studied under a mad scientist. He's going _die! _He's been broken…by a fucking flower."

Zexion's wide eyes told Axel that the short platinum haired Nobody had understood him exactly. He waved Axel off, eyes darkening. Axel almost shivered, because when Zexion wanted someone to hurt, they'd hurt.

After portaling back Demyx's room, Axel gently lay the blonde down on the bed and removed the towels, cleaning the deep gashes and gently winding them up in the bandages, taking care not to hurt him any more than was necessary. When he had done everything he could, he leaned back and let the burning in his eyes surface slightly, the liquid vanishing in a quick hiss of steam.

"A-Axel? What's…what's going on?" Demyx's eyes were sad, but there was a deep shame hiding in their deep depths. Axel blinked and pushed Demyx down when he tried to rise to a sitting position. He saw the blonde wince and sternly told himself to be more careful. He was going to seriously hurt Demyx if he wasn't careful. He was just so fragile…

"You tried to kill yourself," he said flatly, refusing to let any of his feelings slip from behind the barrier he had erected over his…trace memories of a heart. He saw the hurt he caused Demyx, and decided that if Demyx was broken enough to try to kill himself as soon as Axel left, he wasn't the right person to glue him back together.

"Look," he said bitterly, trying to word what he was going to say cautiously, "I understand I'm not the greatest person around but…why would you rather kill yourself than…have to put up with me?"

Demyx looked shocked. "That's not…not what it was about," he finally rasped. He started picking at his bandages, rather than look Axel in the eyes. "I guess…it's because I'm useless," he whispered brokenly.

Now Axel was confused. "What? How are you useless?"

Demyx glared at him through a veil of tears. "Damn it, don't you understand? I wasn't strong enough to…make him leave me alone! I was scared! I'm a worthless coward that deserves everything…" he trailed off.

Axel shook his head firmly. "Not true, none of it. Dem…you're stronger than half the people here. Maybe not physically," he added, cutting of Demyx's angry retort, "but definitely mentally. I don't even know if _I _could deal with what you're going through."

Demyx's anger faded, and a blank, numb expression replaced it. Axel tried to coax Demyx into even a hint of conversation, but it was like someone had cut the main power for Demyx's response and acknowledgement sensors.

Finally, all Axel could do was gently tell Demyx to try and get some sleep before turning off the lights and sitting in a chair, not far from Demyx's bed. He glanced out the window and saw a large wall of massive black clouds rolling in, lightning flickering and dancing in the murky depths of the storm.

"You and me, Dem," he murmured, sighing heavily. "We'll weather the storm, even if…even if we drown."

**Hello, my fine reader and hopefully reviewers! I suppose that's a bit too cheerful for someone that just shattered Demyx's mind and self of self-worth by having him raped…wow. Not good. Anyway, this is the first part of a two shot. I'm not going to extend it any more than that, because I'll get lost. So…yeah. Tell me if you like it, hate it, whatever. Just one itty-bitty request, though: Will someone tell me if I start going overboard on the emotions? I'm playing this by ear, folks. Vielen Dank dafür, die Zeit zu nehmen, um es zu lesen! (Thanks for taking the time to read it!)**


	2. Breaking Tide

Das Abwettern des Sturms nimmt nicht nur Tau, aber Kenntnisse von Knoten ebenso.

(Weathering the storm takes not only rope, but knowledge of knots as well.)

Three weeks later, Demyx's hadn't snapped out of his phase. Vexen came back and diagnosed hm with Post Traumatic Stress Disease. Demyx hadn't even twitched when Xemnas had made Axel use a rape kit, found on another world, to determine what had happened.

He hadn't been surprised when the results came back positive. However, Marluxia had disappeared, not responding to anyone. Axel privately thought that that was for the best, but didn't dare say anything to a stormy-faced Xemnas.

One night, as he was performing what had become an ingrained habit, he paused as he was about to make sure Demyx was comfortable. A shiver traced his spine and he glanced at the thermometer hanging by the window. A cold 33 degrees Farenhiet. He shivered again and hesitated briefly before slipping under Demyx's covers, snuggling close as he tried to warm up.

"Axel? What…what are you doing?" Axel's head shot up and he blinked at Demyx, a grin spreading across his face.

"You talked!" he crowed. "Finally! It's been weeks! How're you feeling?"

"I'd feel better if someone's ice cold feet weren't on the middle of my back," replied Demyx dryly. "But other than that…mended. I…I'm sorry, but…I was kind of in a box, where everything was the same. I had to get out, but I didn't know how."

Axel hugged his friend. "Hope you don't mind me sleeping here, because I'm going to."

Demyx smiled and nodded, before biting his lip. "Umm…Axe?"

Axel cracked open one eyelid, yawning as he said, "Yes?"

"Why am I in your pajama pants?"

"Oh." Axel flushed slightly. "Well, you see, it's been really hard to communicate with you, and you _did _have to take showers, so…umm…I helped?"

Demyx shrugged. "Thanks, Axel," he said quietly. "For everything."

Nearly seven months had passed since that night, and during those months, Axel was forced to admit that he liked Demyx a lot than just his friend. At first, he tried to deny it, arguing that that was the same thing that had happened with Roxas, and now…Roxas was gone for good, according to Xemnas.

He refused to think about advancing on Demyx. He'd been too busy mending and repairing the blonde just to see him shatter again, just because he wanted sex…and love. Oh yes. He let a sneer twist his mouth as he tried to read the words in his book. The dreaded "L" word. It was a lot more than friendship, or even plain and simple attraction. He'd fallen head over heels for the blonde, and landed square on his ass.

"Axel? What're you reading?" Demyx entered Axel's room without knocking, knowing the redhead wouldn't care and sat down on Axel's lap, making the redhead blush slightly. Something about Demyx was different, more nervous, like he was wanting to say something, but not quite daring to.

He set the book down and turned Demyx so the sitarist was facing him. He frowned; Demyx needed to eat more! He was lighter than he should've been, even for Axel's reckoning.

"Demyx, what's going on? Something on your mind?" Axel cut to point, not wasting time. If he could get the permission he needed, had been longing for, for a long time, everything might slip into place.

Demyx took a deep breath, then leaned down swiftly and placed a hesitant kiss on Axel's mouth. Axel jumped in surprise, but caught Demyx as he tried to dart away, deepening the kiss and gently cupping Demyx's neck in his hands.

Demyx pulled away slowly, breathing heavily, his eyes sparkling. "Axel," he said softly, "will it always hurt?"

Axel shook his head. "Dem, it doesn't have to hurt. I…" he hesitated. "I can show you, if you want."

Demyx bit his lip and nodded, looking away. Axel carried Demyx over to his bed and carefully straddled him, seeing fear just beginning to surface in the blonde's eyes. "Anytime you want me to stop," he murmured, "tell me. I will." Not giving Demyx a chance to reply, he slowly and languidly kissed Demyx, his fingers already at work on the buttoned shirt the musician was wearing.

When he'd gotten the shirt off, he moved his lips to Demyx's ear, lapping the earlobe with his tongue and drawing a groan of pleasure from Demyx. He used his tongue to trace across the younger man's jaw, his saliva cooling and making Demyx shiver.

Making his way down the creamy pale golden column of Demyx's neck, he never bit any harder than a nibble, not even leaving marks. His fingers were tracing the ribs of the body beneath his, memorizing the shape and feel of Demyx.

"Axe," gasped Demyx, his hands tugging on Axel's shirt, "you've got too much on!"

Axel smirked and stripped them both quickly and efficiently. Seeing Demyx spread beneath him, he paused for a moment just to enjoy the view, making Demyx blush.

He reached into his bedside drawer and pulled out a small bottle of cinnamon scented hand lotion. Burns always left calluses in the worst places, and it was best just keep them away with lotion rather than try to fix them with medical cream.

Demyx's eyes widened when he saw the lotion, his eyes confused and slightly wary. Axel glanced down and swore. "He didn't prepared you at all, did he, that mangy bastard."

The sitarist blushed and shook his head, tensing up slightly. "He said…he wanted to hear me scream,' he whispered, shame stinging the healing wounds like salt. He felt tears in his eyes, and jumped slightly when Axel gently kissed them away.

Bright acidic green eyes met softer blue-green and Demyx blinked at the amount of emotion in the eyes of his friend above him.

"So," he whispered hesitantly, "do you believe we have hearts now?" Axel's only response was a light, gentle, almost teasing kiss on his nose. The redhead had warmed up the spicy-smelling lotion and slicked up three of his fingers.

"Now, Dem, it's going to hurt at first, especially since you were ripped up pretty bad the first time. You're going to have to trust me, Demyx." He eased in his first finger, feeling the blonde tense and squirm. He waited patiently until the blonde gave Axel a short nod, then inserted his second finger, scissoring gently, stretching and taking his time until Demyx nodded again.

After he had stretched the blonde as well as he could, Axel made sure to coat himself thoroughly in the lotion, shivering slightly as he ran his hand up his length. Demyx watched nervously, propped up on his elbows.

"You know," said Axel, slightly breathlessly, "it'd be more comfortable for you to be on your back."

Demyx shook his head insistently. "No. That's the way Marluxia did it. I want to see you, Axel."

Axel nodded and braced his hands on Demyx's hips, easing himself in, inch by inch, until he was completely surrounded by Demyx's tight warmth. He saw tears slipping from Demyx's eyes and softly kissed him, making the blonde look at him.

"Do you want me to stop?" he whispered, his fingers rubbing soothing circles on Demyx's hips, trying to get the sitarist he was so fond of to relax and try to enjoy what they were doing.

Demyx shook his head. "It's just…so different," he choked out, turning away from Axel. "I thought…I thought it would be the same, but…" More tears slipped from those beautiful eyes and Axel felt his…heart clench in sympathy.

"Demy, it'll never be the same," he whispered, rolling his hips slightly and making Demyx gasp in surprise. He smirked slightly and began rocking forward, slowly increasing the pace and speed until Demyx was practically writhing under him, his eyes glazed in pleasure.

Reaching between their bodies, Axel began pumping Demyx, fisting him in time with his surges forward, drawling a slight mewl from the blonde. Burying his nose in the soft hair behind Demyx's ear, Axel whispered roughly, "Never the same. Never."

When Demyx came with a soft whimper of Axel's name and his inner walls shuddered and clenched down on Axel, the redhead pulled himself out to come beside the blonde, not wanting to have the poor guy deal with semen dripping out his ass for an hour.

Demyx snuggled close to Axel, his breath coming in sweet pants on Axel's face. Axel gently touched their lips together and murmured, "Hey Dem?"

"Mmmm?"

"I…think I love you, Demy."

Demyx blinked sleepily at him, looking all the while like a cat that has just managed to get all the cream in the pantry. "You think too much, Axe," he mumbled, tugging the blanket over them. "Just say you love me already."

Axel blinked. "Yes, sir. I love you, Demyx."

Demyx smiled. "That's good, 'cause I love you too, Firecrotch."

After Demyx fell asleep, Axel just watched him, feeling a startling warmth in his chest. He traced his blonde's cheek, feeling as though a weight had been lifted from his mind, and when Demyx smiled in his sleep, Axel let the love wash over him like a breaking tide.

**Okay, it's finished! Hurray! Well, sorta. I'm thinking about making a massive flashback to when Demyx was totally out of it, but that would include the rape scene and everything, so I don't know. That might have to come later. So, for now, it is complete! Thanks to the whole entire ONE person that reviewed this, XFireStarterAxelX and goodbye! But I will be back. That's a threat, not a promise. **


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